The Bulletin NEW YORK RAILWAYS’ STREET CARS QUIT

The ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016 Bulletin Electric Railroaders’ Association, Incorporated Vol. 59, No. 6 June, 2016

Published by the Electric 80 YEARS AGO Railroaders’ Association, Incorporated, PO Box by Bernard Linder 3323, New York, New York 10163-3323. On June 8, 1936, buses replaced street Horse cars started operating in the second th cars on the last New York Railways line, 86 half of the Nineteenth Century with each For general inquiries, Street Crosstown. This company, which oper- company usually operating only one line. The contact us at bulletin@ ated most of the Manhattan’s street cars, Metropolitan Traction Company, which was erausa.org. ERA’s converted to bus rapidly as shown in the fol- incorporated on February 19, 1886, acquired website is lowing table: the capital stock of seven horse car compa- www.erausa.org. LINE DATE STREET BUSES nies until the company’s name was changed Editorial Staff: CONVERTED CARS to the Metropolitan Traction Company of New Editor-in-Chief: th York on August 4, 1892. The company was Bernard Linder 4 & Madison February 1, 56 89 Avenue 1935 able to create a unified system by buying Tri-State News and eight additional companies, after which it Commuter Rail Editor: th Ronald Yee 8 Avenue November 12, 40 55 sold its assets to the Metropolitan Street 1935 North American and World Railway on September 14, 1897. News Editor: 9th & Amsterdam November 12, 19 27 Meanwhile the unpredictable happened. An Alexander Ivanoff Avenue 1935 obscure 1.57-mile Mount Vernon trolley line Contributing Editor: Jeffrey Erlitz Broadway-7th February 12, 55 86 was able to acquire the giant Manhattan Met- Avenue 1936 ropolitan Street Railway. Operating from the Production Manager: New Haven station to Columbus Avenue at David Ross Columbus & Le- February 12, nox Avenue 1936 the city line, the North Mount Vernon Railway Company, which was incorporated April 20, 7th Avenue March 6, 1936 46 35 ©2016 Elect ric 1892, tried battery cars, then converted to Railroaders ’ 8th Street Cross- March 6, 1936 11 15 horse cars, both of which were unsuccessful. Association, town The company never made a profit and was Incorporate d th 6 Avenue March 12, 1936 26 40 sold to the New York, Westchester & Con- necticut Traction Company on January 16, Lex-Lenox Ave- March 25, 1936 63 75 1900. The latter, which was incorporated on nue February 12, 1895, operated a 2.86-mile line In This Issue: 116th Street April 1, 1936 10 16 in Mount Vernon from the New Haven station From Crosstown to East Lincoln Avenue at the city line. On 34th Street Cross- April 1, 1936 37 41 December 9, 1901, the company leased its Recognition to town property and franchises, and relinquished

Dominance— rd North Mount Vernon to the Interurban Street 23 Street Cross- April 8, 1936 30 32 The New York town Railway, which was incorporated on Novem-

Connecting th ber 25, 1901. After completing several trans- 14 Street Cross- April 20, 1936 42 45 actions, Interurban was able to lease the Railroad town Metropolitan Street Railway and was in sub- (Continued) 86th Street Cross- June 8, 1936 9 24 stantial control of the entire street surface …Page 2 town railway system of Manhattan, the Bronx, and TOTAL 444 580 (Continued on page 4)

NEXT TRIP: BLACK RIVER & WESTERN1 RAILROAD — SATURDAY, JUNE 18

NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000 FROM RECOGNITION TO DOMINANCE: THE NEW YORK CONNECTING RAILROAD (BRIDGING THE BAY AND CONNECTING THE PIECES) by George Chiasson (Continued from May, 2016 issue)

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ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016

From Recognition to Dominance (Continued from page 2)

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NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000 New York Railways Street Cars Quit 80 Years Ago (Continued from page 1)

Half open car 2205. Open car 280. Bernard Linder collection Bernard Linder collection

Horse car 32. Horse car in the snow. Bernard Linder collection Bernard Linder collection

Interior of horse car. Underground conduit construction at W. 109th Street and Manhat- Bernard Linder collection tan Avenue, June 9, 1915. Bernard Linder collection (Continued on page 5) 4

ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016 New York Railways Street Cars Quit 80 Years Ago (Continued from page 4)

Metropolitan Street Railway at Cooper Union. New York Railways cars on Delancey Street, April 30, 1919. Bernard Linder collection Bernard Linder collection

New York Railways car 1589 in Central Park, June 7, 1936. Eighth and Ninth Avenue Railway rear shed at W. 155th Street, just Bernard Linder collection after the first of April 19, 1933. Bernard Linder collection

Delancey Street, 1919. New York Railways car 4024 at W. 146th Street and Lenox Avenue. Bernard Linder collection Bernard Linder collection

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NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000

New York Railways Street Cars Quit 80 Years Ago operation on December 31, 1911. A new company, New York Railways Company, started operating the remain- (Continued from page 5) ing Manhattan street car lines on January 1, 1912. The following subsidiaries were separated and later the southern part of Westchester County with the ex- returned to New York Railways as shown in the follow- ception of a horse car line between Bartow Station and City Island. To properly identify the company with New COMPANY SEPARATED FROM RETURNED TO NEW YORK NEW YORK York City, the name was changed to New York City Rail- RAILWAYS RAILWAYS way Company on February 10, 1904. After the new subway opened on October 27, 1904, New York & Harlem February 1, 1920 December 17, 1932 street car riding declined appreciably and the company Eighth Avenue Rail- August 1, 1919 June 1, 1935 (A) was on the verge of bankruptcy. To bolster the compa- road ny’s finances, a new holding company, Interborough- Ninth Avenue Rail- October 1, 1919 June 1, 1935 (A) Metropolitan, was created on January 14, 1906. It tried road to acquire the capital stock of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company, which was profitable, and the street ing table: railways , which were not profitable. When the Metropol- (A) Companies were merged into Eighth & Ninth Ave- itan declared bankruptcy late in 1907, IRT refused to nue Railways on December 22, 1926 support the bankrupt system. Meanwhile, the company After the Contract 3 and 4 subway lines were opened, disintegrated gradually. Second Avenue Railroad was New York Railways riding declined appreciably and rush separated on November 13, 1908 and Third Avenue hour service was reduced from 911 cars in 1919 to 444 Railroad, the largest and oldest, resumed independent cars at abandonment, 1935-6.

Car 1308 on 86th Street Crosstown. Car 240 at W. 23rd Street Ferry, 1920. Car was part of a series sold Bernard Linder collection to Third Avenue Railway in 1924 and renumbered to 401-527. Bernard Linder collection

(Continued in August, 2016 issue)

Around New York’s Transit System on the other side of the fence (so to speak), City Coun- cil member David Greenfield, representing Midwood, (Continued from page 20) applauds the plan to restore the F express in Brooklyn. F that calls for some trains to operate express for the The riders from Park Slope will have G from Church first time in over 30 years between Church Avenue and Avenue to Bergen Street to supplement the loss of F Jay Street with an intermediate stop at Seventh Avenue. service, but the bottom line is that G does not go to It is proposed to take effect as part of a service change Manhattan. At this time, it is not possible to add any planned for the summer of 2017, While it reduces travel additional F trains to replace the service lost from the times to Jay Street and Manhattan by six to seven local stops due to fleet size limitations (insufficient cars minutes for the 48% of the line’s riders traveling to and in the fleet to support adding more consists). from Church Avenue and points south, 52% of the line’s W to be Restored riders will experience a decrease in service in the form The MTA Board approved the restoration of W from of fewer and more crowded trains stopping at their sta- th Whitehall Street to Astoria/Ditmars Boulevard starting in tions, including Fort Hamilton Parkway, 15 Street, Ber- November to replace the current Q service to Astoria, gen Street, Carroll Street, Fourth Avenue, and Smith- which will be diverted from 57th Street-Seventh Avenue Ninth Street. These bypassed stations include the Park via the new Second Avenue Subway to 96th Street when Slope section of Brooklyn, whose City Council member, it opens in December. Brad Lander, has vowed to oppose this plan. However,

ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016 From Recognition to Dominance (Continued from page 3)

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NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000

From Recognition to Dominance (Continued from page 7)

(Continued next issue)

ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016

Commuter and Transit Notes No. 331 by Ronald Yee and Alexander Ivanoff

Metropolitan Transportation Authority Wakefield, with passengers using 2 to 241st Street- MTA is taking its first steps toward mobile or e- White Plains Road and walking ½-mile to the Wakefield ticketing on its commuter railroads by utilizing a ticket- Metro-North station. New Haven passengers rode the ing app designed for mobile devices. Developed in con- NYC Transit 2 (5 rush hours) to 233rd Street and junction with the British-based Masabi Corporation, the walked ¼-mile downhill to the Woodlawn Metro-North ticketing system will initially be used on the Long Island station where New Haven Line trains were being termi- Rail Road’s Port Washington Branch and Metro-North nated and turned back eastward. During overnight in- Railroad’s Hudson Line during June. Assuming a spections by engineering staff, significant structural smooth rollout, the rest of the commuter rail system damage to the elevated structure was confirmed. As a should have the e-ticketing system by the end of 2016. result, train traffic was limited to the outer two tracks, Customers seeking to utilize this new means of fare Tracks 3 and 4. The middle express tracks, 1 and 2, payment will download a free app to their mobile device, were taken out of service until the structure below could set up an account, and link it to a credit card or bank be shored up. As a result of the reduced capacity, a Sat- account. Upon purchasing a single- or multiple-ride tick- urday schedule was operated on all three lines to Grand et, the user activates it upon boarding the train and al- Central Terminal starting Wednesday, May 18. Extreme lows the train crew to scan the code displayed on the overcrowding and delays of up to 80 minutes were re- mobile device with a special scanner to redeem that e- ported that morning as Metro-North Railroad encour- ticket as they pass through the cars while performing aged its customers to telecommute and work from their fare collection sweeps. This ticketing app is al- home or find alternative travel arrangements. During ready in use on Los Angeles’ Metrolink, Boston’s MBTA, Wednesday’s PM peak, inbound trains between 5 PM and NICE, the suburban local bus system on Long Is- and 8 PM bypassed Harlem-125th Street in an attempt land, a suburb east of New York City. (Newsday, May to relieve the train traffic congestion resulting from trains 18) stopping at that station. Some outbound peak trains MTA Metro-North Railroad were also instructed to skip this station to increase In its ongoing effort to insure the safety and integrity of through-put. By the start of the AM peak period on its tracks, Metro-North contracted with Ensco to design Thursday, May 19, an “enhanced” Saturday schedule and build an $11 million, state-of-the-art track geometry was placed into effect with extra trains added to a nor- vehicle to inspect its tracks, ending a long standing mal Saturday schedule to handle up to 75% of normal practice of depending on private contractors or bor- weekday peak period ridership. A normal weekday rowed LIRR track geometry vehicles. The new inspec- schedule was restored in time for the AM peak period tion vehicle, expected in early 2018, should be capable on Friday, May 20 once six new steel columns were of inspecting track gauge, cross-level, rail-head profile, installed to supplement a column damaged by the fire. It and curvature. (MidHudsonNews.com, May 13) was revealed that the gardening supply business that Metro North evening peak service was completely had caught fire was storing gasoline and liquefied petro- shut down around 6:30 PM Tuesday, May 17. An in- leum gas and other flammable materials without the tense fire at a gardening supply business establishment th th proper permits and was issued at least four citations for located under the elevated structure at E. 118 -119 the violations. (Editor’s Note by Ron Yee: The platforms Streets burned so hot that the structural steel support- at Marble Hill, Wakefield, and Woodlawn are only four ing the Park Avenue Viaduct and elevated was heat cars long; this must have been a crowd control night- damaged. Engineering staff worked overnight to evalu- mare. In addition, passengers traveling north from ate the damage before considering any train service Grand Central on the Lexington Avenue Subway were over the damaged portions. Alternate services were required to change from 5 at E. 180th Street to 2 as quickly set up from Grand Central and midtown Manhat- only a few 5 trains operate over the White Plains Road tan to enable passengers to travel to and from Line. In comparison, the Hudson Line’s Yankees-E. Westchester and points north and east during the re- 153rd Street station has two 10-car island platforms to mainder of the evening peak and evening/late night handle diversion crowds. (WNBC-TV, WABC-TV, New hours. The Hudson Line turned its trains at Yankees- E. rd York Post, New York Daily News, May 17-21) 153 Street with passengers using the NYC Transit 4 Almost three years after the May 17, 2013 derailment and D to 161st Street and walking ½-mile to the Metro- in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Metro-North crews moved North station. Passengers originating on Manhattan’s four M-8s that had been damaged to the Kawasaki facil- th west side also had the option of riding 1 to 225 Street ity in Yonkers, New York for repairs. The transfer of cars and making a one-block transfer to the Marble Hill sta- 9174-5 and 9310-1 occurred over the weekend of May tion. Hudson Line tickets were also being honored on 7-8. (Internal MTA source, May 18) the west-of-Hudson Pascack Valley and Port Jervis Line trains to Hoboken. The Harlem Line turned its trains at (Continued on page 10)

NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000

Commuter and Transit Notes tomers looking to ride to Bay Shore, Sayville, and Patchogue and connect to Fire Island Ferries and move (Continued from page 9) them off from the crowded Montauk trains. These two Speaking of Metro-North/CDOT’s M-8 fleet, a copy of extras will be serviced by the same equipment consist the ever-elusive M-8 car fleet roster was obtained by which will operate from Jamaica at 8:04 AM to this Editor from an internal Metro-North source who pre- Patchogue, deadhead back to Babylon to connect with fers to remain anonymous. The 405-car M-8 fleet, sub- an extra electric train from Penn Station, and return to divided by owner and type, is listed below: Patchogue on a second trip. On summer Friday nights, a deadhead train will be “livened up” to carry passen- CAR FLEET OWNER TYPE gers from Greenport to Ronkonkoma, then non-stop to NUMBERS SIZE Jamaica. (Newsday, April 27; LIRR press release, May 9100-99 100 CDOT Married Pair 22) The $37 million in funds to purchase Diesel Multiple 9200-99 100 MTA Married Pair Unit (DMU) passenger cars for use on eastern Long 9300-99 100 CDOT Married Pair Island shuttle services has apparently been reallocated 9400-21 22 MTA Married Pair toward the purchase of 24 work locomotives to replace the current fleet of 1970s-vintage engines. (MTA Capital 9460-76 9 MTA Single Car; even numbers only Program, May, 2016) 9500-19 20 CDOT Married Pair NJ Transit The two unions representing the Locomotive Engi- 9560-90 16 CDOT Single Car; even numbers only neers (BLET) and Conductors and Assistant Conduc- 9600-23 24 CDOT Married Pair tors (UTU Local 60) rejected the contract agreement reached in March to avert a threatened strike. While 9530/9631- 14 CDOT Potential Cafe Married Pairs; 95xx 9542/9643 even numbers only, 96xx odd num- there is now again the potential for a strike toward the bers only end of June, both sides have agreed to return to the negotiating table. The margin of votes to reject the MTA Long Island Rail Road March agreement was quite narrow. The 14 other un- On Saturday, April 30, LIRR resumed weekend ser- ions have already ratified their negotiated contracts. vice between Greenport and Ronkonkoma. It will oper- (NorthJersey.com, May 1) ate until November 27. With the May 23 schedule After several delays, NJT opened its new Wesmont change LIRR fully implemented its summertime service, commuter rail station on the Bergen County Line on including its famous Cannonball offering direct service May 15. This station was constructed between the exist- from Penn Station to Montauk on Thursdays and Fri- ing Garfield and Rutherford stations in Wood-Ridge to days leaving Penn Station. at 4:06 PM, operating non- serve a $400 million development surrounding the for- stop to Westhampton in 95 minutes and arriving in Mon- mer Curtiss-Wright aircraft engine factory dating back to tauk at 6:48 PM and leaving Montauk at 6:37 PM and World War II and earlier. (North Jersey.com, NJ Transit, Westhampton at 7:39 PM, operating non-stop to Jamai- May 15) ca and arriving at Penn Station at 9:31 PM on Sundays Amtrak and on Monday for three-day holiday weekends. This Amtrak announced that the system timetable issued schedule offers two new Friday extra trains to Montauk effective January 11 as the Winter/Spring, 2016 edition from July 1 through September 2 in addition to the usual will be its final issue. Citing costs of production and the three added trains to Montauk from prior years. In addi- inability to accurately reflect ongoing changes in sched- tion to the Cannonball, there are four extra inbound ules in a mass printing that is a national timetable, the trains from Montauk on Sundays and a Monday morn- nation’s intercity passenger railroad will only issue corri- ing extra train from Montauk to Hunterspoint Avenue. dor- and route-specific schedules beginning this sum- There will also be one added train to Greenport, an ad- mer. For the most current and accurate schedules, cus- ditional weekend round trip to Long Beach, and addi- tomers will be urged to consult the Amtrak website at tional midday service to/from Speonk. The usual week- www.amtrak.com. (Amtrak, April 25) end bus connection to and from Jones Beach will once Amtrak is planning to operate a “Farewell to the AEM- again be available at Freeport. New for 2016 is an effort 7 Locomotive” excursion train on June 18, originating to alleviate crowding on East End trains during the sum- out of Washington D.C. and running as far north as Phil- mer season. Staying within the constraints of its limited adelphia’s “Zoo” Interlocking before turning back south diesel passenger fleet, LIRR is operating a prototype to D.C. A tour of Amtrak’s Wilmington Shops is planned demonstrator service that will include: the 4:00 PM de- for excursion trip attendees as is a photo stop enroute. parture from Montauk will operate to Hunterspoint Ave- The fleet of 54 locomotives has a combined total of over nue instead of terminating at Jamaica, offering a one- 220 million miles over their 37-year service on the seat ride to passengers who had ridden out from that Northeast Corridor and Harrisburg Line. (Progressive terminal on Friday to start their weekend. There will also Railroading, May 5; Amtrak, May 6) be two extra trains operating ahead of two through Queens County officials in New York City want to cele- trains to Montauk, which will hopefully take on the cus- (Continued on page 11)

ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016

Commuter and Transit Notes but what this piece stated was that APTA was more focused on shoring up transit, even when legislation before Congress (Continued from page 10) was inadequate to meet the needs of many transit systems. brate the centennial birthday of the Hell Gate Bridge, Melaniphy's fall from APTA leadership can only make the which, when completed in September, 1916, was the organization stronger. Let us hope that new leadership is wis- world’s longest steel arch bridge. Officially opened to er than prior leadership.) (Railway Age, April 18 and rail traffic on March 9, 1917 and utilized by the Pennsyl- May 1) vania Railroad to reach Boston, officials want to com- Other Transit Systems memorate the occasion with fireworks, historical tours, Boston, Massachusetts night-time lighting, and a fresh coat of paint. Thus far, A westbound MBTA Green Line LRV derailed as it ap- Amtrak is reluctant to actively participate in this effort, at proached the Park Street station in downtown Boston times stating the proposed lighting could interfere with just before 9 AM on Friday, May 13. No injuries were locomotive Engineers’ night vision going from a totally reported amongst the 200 passengers aboard the LRV. dark roadbed to a brightly lit bridge all of a sudden. As While the incident severely disrupted operations on the for the paint, Amtrak’s position is that the current layer Green Line, normal service was resumed shortly after of paint, while faded, is sufficient to achieve its primary 12:50 PM. (Boston Globe, May 13) purpose, to protect the steel of the bridge from corro- Lake Placid, New York sion/rust. (Queens Gazette, May 4) Governor Andrew M. Cuomo has approved a $23 mil- Nippon Sharyo, under contract to build 172 bi-level lion plan for a state-owned rail corridor, which calls for passenger cars for Amtrak’s California and Midwest ser- renovating 45 miles of track to extend the route of the vices, is still committed to completing the order before Adirondack Scenic Railroad to Tupper Lake and con- the September 30, 2017 deadline of being able to apply verting 34 miles into a multiuse recreational trail from for up to $551 million in federal funds under the Ameri- Tupper Lake to Lake Placid. can Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus monies The work will begin this fall and be completed within intended to generate economic activity during the se- three years, Mr. Cuomo said on May 17. The Olympic vere economic downturn of 2007-9. 130 cars of this or- Regional Development Authority in Lake Placid will der are earmarked for Midwest corridor services. The have a hand in managing the broad, flat trail that will be delays in construction and delivery of these cars stem used for bicycling, walking, skiing, and snowmobiling. from the prototype carbody failing to meet the American Rail supporters, who lobbied to have the tracks up- Association of Railroads’ (AAR) 800,000 pound com- graded all the way to Lake Placid, vowed to fight the pression test, necessitating a significant redesign of the plan. (New York Times via Associated Press, May 17 ) frame to meet the Federal Railroad Administration’s Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (FRA) requirements for passenger rail equipment in the At the beginning of April, SEPTA released its capital USA. Until the car’s design is re-engineered to meet plan for the 2017-22 timeframe, in part doable thanks to FRA/AAR standards. (Al Holtz, May 18) the passage of Act 89. In a change of tradition at SEP- Industry TA, the focus, while still on a state of good repair, has The April 29 announcement that Michael P. Melaniphy, been expanded to also include some urgently needed the President and CEO of APTA (American Public service expansions, including the extension of the Me- Transportation Association), would be leaving was met dia/Elwyn Line to Wawa and eventually its original ter- with optimism, seeing how the departure of New York’s minus at West Chester, the extension of the Broad MTA from the organization was seen as a loss of credi- Street Line to the Philadelphia Naval Yard, improve- bility to APTA. In a statement, the organization stated ments to transit on Roosevelt Boulevard (short of build- that Melaniphy’s resignation “comes after consensus ing Philadelphia's own Second Avenue Subway), and between the APTA Executive Committee and Melani- the extension of the Lansdale/Doylestown Line to Quak- phy,” Now that Melaniphy is out of the picture, there has ertown. (SEPTA press release and capital plan report, been speculation that MTA could return to the APTA April 1) fold, provided that several key changes take place. Washington, D.C. area Among MTA’s complaints is that no so-called “Legacy MARC commuter rail service and Amtrak’s Capitol Systems” (MTA, NJ Transit, SEPTA, CTA, MBTA, PATH, Limited were suspended by the derailment of 10 cars of BART, MUNI, PATCO, etc.) or commuter rail systems a freight train near the Rhode Island Avenue Metro ele- have voting representation on the APTA Executive vated station at 6:40 am on Sunday, May 1. One of the Committee. MTA Chairman Tom Prendergast called this derailed freight cars was carrying a load of sodium hy- “unconscionable.” droxide, classified as a hazardous cargo as it is highly In the interim, former APTA Chair and APTA Vice Pres- corrosive but not an airborne inhalant agent; therefore, ident-Member Services Richard A. White is Acting Pres- WMATA closed the Rhode Island Avenue station and ident and CEO until a permanent replacement is select- established a bus bridge between the North Massachu- ed. (Editor's Note by Sasha Ivanoff: Melaniphy struck me setts Avenue/Gallaudet and Brookland stations to carry (and Joe Boardman at Amtrak is guilty of it in my view, from customers around the scene. WMATA service was re- time to time) as a bit of an industry cheerleader, and I am not sumed in time for the Monday morning rush hour. the only person who has said this. I forget where I read this, (Continued on page 12)

NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000

Commuter and Transit Notes WMATA General Manager Paul Wiedefeld abruptly fired 20 managers, seven of whom were senior manag- (Continued from page 11) ers at Metro operations. Of the 13,000 employees at (Associated Press, May 1) WMATA, most of whom are represented by three un- After decades of mismanagement, neglect, and insuf- ions, 650 are “at will” employees who can be let go at ficient funding, starting in June, the Washington Metro the General Manager’s discretion. The recent woes at will begin a year-long program called SafeTrack, during the beleaguered agency were probably the catalyst for which the system will be repaired and its many issues this reorganization and streamlining effort. (Washington addressed. This effort will create many inconveniences Post, May 20) for customers, necessitating week-long, and, in some Florida cases, multiple week closures of entire sections of a line The first six of 136 new Miami Dade Metro railcars are to expedite the repairs. A third rail insulator that had expected to enter the testing phase and lead the way been set on fire by high voltage electricity on May 5, for the remaining 130 cars to begin entering service in which was recorded by security cameras at the Federal 2017 with completion of the $313.8 million order in Center SW station, prompted WMATA General Manager 2019. These cars were originally scheduled to begin Paul Wiedefeld to take drastic action in an effort to pre- service in 2015 but encountered delays stemming from vent yet another serious incident. Operation SafeTrack the assembly factory being late in opening up for pro- will involve 15 work projects, which will be similar to duction as well as a design change ordered by Miami- “maintenance blitzes” seen on freight railroad mainlines. Dade Metro to make the ends of the carbodies more Ten projects will require the single-tracking of select rounded and slightly sloped at the ends to create a sections of a line for periods of one to six weeks, reduc- streamlined appearance, as well as delays in the con- ing the number of trains that can be operated over the struction and opening (March, 2016) of the assembly entire line, leading to crowding and delays. The remain- plant in Medley, Florida for Ansaldo-Breda, whose rail der of the work, which will require line closures, will manufacturing assets have been taken over by Hitachi. begin June 18-July 3 between Eastern Market and Min- The new cars will feature more space for bicycles as nesota Avenue; July 5 between Reagan Airport and well as high-definition security cameras, additional Braddock Road for one week; then another week start- screen monitors in each car announcing the next sta- ing the following week on July 12 involving the Blue and tion, advertising, high-quality audio systems for an- Yellow Lines between Reagan National Airport and Pen- nouncements, and improved high-efficiency air- tagon City. There will be a 23-day closure from October conditioning, (Miami Herald, May 22) 10-November 1 between NoMa and Fort Totten on the The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has Red Line with a concurrent closure of the Brookland- decided not to apply for a federal TIGER CUA and Rhode Island Avenue stations. An 18-day clo- (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Re- sure from December 7 to December 24 will shutter the covery) grant that would have gone toward funding an Blue Line from Pentagon to Rosslyn and idle the Arling- extension of the SunRail commuter rail line from its cur- ton Cemetery station (with exception of December 17 rent northernmost terminus of DeBary 12 miles north- for the Wreaths Across America event there). The sin- ward along the former CSX line (now owned by FDOT) gle-tracking disruptions will occur June 4-19 on the Yel- to DeLand in Volusia County. The principle reason for low and Blue Lines between Franconia-Springfield and the decision not to apply for the federal grant was that Van Dorn; June 20-July 3 and July 20-31 on the Green the amount of the grant was not going to be as high as and Yellow Lines between College Park and Greenbelt; previously hoped for, requiring FDOT to assume a August 1-8 from Takoma to Silver Spring and August 9- greater share of the extension’s cost. (Editor’s Note by 19 from Shady Grove to Twinbrook on the Red Line; on Ron Yee: There had also been some debate amongst county the Orange Line September 9 to October 21 from Vien- officials as to whether the originally planned location of Sun- na to West Falls Church, November 2-12, 2016 and Rail’s new terminus at DeLand should be located on the large March 6-20, 2017 from West Falls Church to East Falls parcel of land adjacent to and just south of the current Church; the Orange and Silver Lines between East Amtrak station located 3 miles outside of town. The city of Falls Church and Ballston from November 12- Deland was more in favor of having SunRail come off the December 5 and the Yellow and Blue Lines from Brad- former CSX mainline (now owned by FDOT) at a switch lo- dock Road to Huntington on the Yellow Line and Van cated south of the Amtrak station onto a branchline spur that Dorn on the Blue Line from January 2-15 and 23-26, goes right into downtown DeLand, serving the city center and 2017. Most of the work will involve the replacement of linking it with Orlando.) (Progressive Railroading, May 50,000 wood ties that have deteriorated as well as rail 4) replacement and third rail power assemblies that have Chicago, Illinois become prone to short circuits and fires. In addition to Lawyers acting on behalf of Bombardier, the losing all of this work, beginning June 3, the Washington Metro bidder for up to 846 of the next generation of subway will no longer be open until 3 AM and will close down at and elevated cars for the Chicago Transit Authority midnight. This will provide longer construction/work time (CTA), have made allegations that the winning bidder, windows overnight by which maintenance crews can China-based CSR Sifang America, may produce rail- perform vitally needed work. (Washington Post, May 9) (Continued on page 13)

ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016 Commuter and Transit Notes ies from 1966-96, and then followed repeated citywide light rail elections that failed with voters or were unwork- (Continued from page 12) able. cars with ineffective anti-climbers built into the design of Kansas City has not been a stranger to urban plan- the structure, making them prone to “telescoping” in the ning challenges, including the hassles that came with event of a collision. A CTA spokesperson has released a restoring the Union Station that is in part the rail transit statement that the claim is without merit. The claim is hub for the region. Amtrak left the station in 1985 only to based on artist’s conceptions released by CSR that do return in 2002, one of many that Amtrak has returned to not incorporate all of the features with which the actual after originally leaving. Despite a failed vote in 2014 to cars will be equipped. Bombardier is also alleging that expand the system, groups in Kansas City are deter- CTA changed some of the evaluation criteria without mined to expand the current two-mile line into a major informing Bombardier. CSR’s bid was $226 million be- system. (Mass Transit Magazine via McClatchy, May 8; low Bombardier, a significant percentage of the $1.31 Kansas City Star, May 6 and 19) billion order. (Crain’s Chicago Business, April 27) Dallas, Texas Kansas City, Missouri In March, 2017, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) will introduce a cash-reloadable, pre-paid value farecard in a partnership with PayNearMe. Riders will be able to buy such cards at hundreds of retail locations such as 7-Eleven, Fidelity Express stores, and those on the Blackhawk network. Passengers can pay with cash or DART’s Go Pass mobile app to reload their cards. These cards will be valid on DART transit vehicles, Den- ton County Transportation Authority, and Trinity Railway Express. The aim of this system is to reduce the volume of cash fare transactions on DART transit vehicles, es- pecially on the buses. (Yahoo News, May 16) During the week of April 11, the Lone Star Rail District went on the offensive two months after Union Pacific announced it would not participate in a proposal to use its tracks for a commuter rail between San Antonio and Austin. Kansas City Streetcar 803 passes the Muse of the Missouri fountain On April 8, the district's Board was called for a special along Main Street in downtown Kansas City on the first morning of meeting where it was presented with four alternatives to passenger service, Friday, May 6, 2016. the previous plan, which is dead in its tracks. At the Andrew Grahl Photo. meeting, the Board voted to continue the environmental study, which could enable future funding. Interstate 35 May 6 marked the return of electric traction to Kansas has a history of serious congestion issues. City after a 59-year absence. With glorious blue skies The alternatives all involve the I-35 corridor and in- as a backdrop and a crowd of several hundred people clude: "the SH130 corridor, the abandoned MoKan rail in front of him, Kansas City Mayor Sly James pro- alignment, and new right-of-way parallel to the Union claimed the start of a new era of rail transit in the city Pacific mainline, as well as hybrids of these options." with the grand opening of KC Streetcar. (Also present According to the Lone Star Rail District, the project is was ERA Program Manager Andrew Grahl with his halfway through the implementation process. It expects wife.) the environmental study to be completed by 2018. (San James acknowledged the many city and federal part- Antonio Current, April 18) ners who helped make the new $100 million, 2.2-mile Denver, Colorado streetcar starter line a reality and said it is an example With the successful opening of its first commuter rail of the challenging, risky, and historic projects that cities line, the A Line, linking Union Station in downtown Den- need to tackle to play in the big leagues. ver with its international airport on April 22, 2016, Den- To sum up, there were decades of planning, election ver’s RTD announced that it is on schedule to open its failures, legal setbacks, hard work and progress, con- second electric commuter rail line, a major portion of the struction disruptions, and months of testing leading up B Line linking downtown Denver with Westminster, on to the final big day. But the streetcar is also an emotion- July 25. A third line, the C Line linking South Westmin- al and sentimental project for those who remember the ster with Longmont, will utilize diesel-powered equip- heyday of Kansas City streetcars, before the last car ment and will be built when funding becomes available. stopped in 1957. Many of those riding that Friday also (Progressive Railroading, May 6) rode on the original system. Construction of Denver’s Southeast Rail Extension is Before World War II, Kansas City had one of the most to start on May 16, following a groundbreaking ceremo- robust streetcar systems in the country, but it shut down ny on May 10. Held at the site of the future Sky Ridge 59 years ago. The city pursued a number of transit stud- (Continued on page 14)

NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000 Commuter and Transit Notes site end of the train from the Metrolink locomotive, these leased freight locomotives were supposed to tem- (Continued from page 13) porarily replace the Rotem-built cab control cars while station, the ceremony was attended by RTD General engineering staff came up with a permanent solution for Manager and CEO Dave Genova, local mayors, and the the safety issues presented by poorly designed “pilots” Federal Transit Administration’s Regional Administrator, on those cars, which proved to be ineffective at handing Linda Gherke. the forces from impacting large motor vehicles at grade FTA is contributing $92 million towards the $233.1 crossings. In addition to train crews having to “spot” the million project from its Capital Investment Grant pro- trains on account of the extra locomotive, there are now gram, with the rest being covered from local funding issues where the braking characteristics of these heavy sources. RTD says it has raised an “unprecedented” freight units may be presenting a hazard when braking $25 million in cash and an estimated $3 million in land a consist made up of a mix of two types of coaches. and right-of-way permits from the City of Lone Tree, These freight units are much heavier than passenger Douglas County, Coventry Development, and the locomotives and instead of using straight air as their Southeast Public Improvement District. primary means of braking, these units rely primarily on Part of the FasTracks program approved by voters in their dynamic brakes to slow a train. The combination of 2004, the extension will add a further 2.3 miles to the mixed braking modes on the locomotives at each end of 19-mile Southeast Line. The route will follow the Inter- the train combined with a mixture of Rotem-built stain- state 25 corridor south from Lincoln Avenue to serve less steel bi-level coaches and relatively lighter weight Sky Ridge and the future Lone Tree City Center before aluminum-skinned Bombardier bi-level coaches are cre- turning east to reach the new terminus at Ridge Gate ating heat-related stressing on the brake rotor assem- Parkway. Transit-oriented development is part of all the blies of the Rotem cars. (Unnamed Metrolink internal plans. Concurrent with the project, RTD is to purchase source, April 30) an additional eight LRVs. In a second effort to shore up falling ridership levels, In July, 2015 RTD selected Balfour Beatty Infrastruc- the Metrolink Board of Directors approved the lowering ture, Incorporated as construction contractor for the ex- of fares for trips of less than 20 miles effective July 1. tension, which is due to be completed by 2019. It will be Earlier in 2016, a $3 station-to-station fare was put into served by three light rail routes: the E Line to Union effect as a pilot program for six months but attracted Station, the F Line to 18th and California in the city cen- limited interest as it was limited to select ticket types. ter, and the orbital R Line through Aurora to an inter- (Metrolinktrains.com, May 18) change at Peoria with the University of Colorado A Line The Expo Line extension to Santa Monica opened on commuter rail line to Denver International Airport. May 20 at noon, restoring rail service between Los An- (Railway Gazette, May 12) geles and Santa Monica for the first time in 63 years. Seattle, Washington Free rides were offered to the public through Saturday, Sound Transit’s Board voted to keep the Tacoma Link May 21 on the seven-station, 6.6-mile, $1.5 billion line light rail fare-free until 2022, the projected opening date extension. Free rides were offered on Friday, May 20 of its 2.2-mile extension to the Stadium and Hilltop and Saturday, May 21. (Los Angeles Times, May 20) neighborhoods. It was deemed that the cost of adminis- As the June Bulletin goes to press, prospective riders tering and performing the fare collection aspects would are closer than ever to actually riding the Perris Valley exceed the amount of revenue based on current rid- Line. ership levels. The Downtown Tacoma Business Im- Transportation officials on May 11 announced that the provement Area (BIA) has been subsidizing the opera- commuter rail line will open for service June 6. River- tion of the light rail line since 2014 and will continue to side County Transportation Commission Deputy Execu- do so. (Progressive Railroading, May 2) tive Director John Standiford confirmed the tentative San Francisco, California date for the planned opening of the 24-mile spur with MUNI expanded its new E Line streetcar service from four new stations in Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Per- weekends only to a seven-day-per-week operation from ris. 10 AM to 7 PM beginning April 23. Out of the Market The extension of the 91 Line was approved by RCTC Street Railway’s fleet of nearly 60 historic and/or vin- in 2003, cost $248 million, and is the first extension of tage streetcars from all around the world, five of the Metrolink service in 22 years. The Perris Valley Line is seven double-ended PCCs in the fleet are needed to expected to serve more than 4,000 riders a week, ac- operate this service on a 15-minute headway linking the cording to the transportation officials. Embarcadero waterfront area, CalTrain, and the Giants According to the new Metrolink schedule released at baseball stadium as there are no turn-back loops on the beginning of May, service to the four new Perris Val- this line. It is hoped that the operating hours can be ex- ley Line stations will be active Monday through Friday, panded to 6 AM later this year. (Al Holtz, April 24) but not on weekends. Los Angeles, California Three early-morning trains departing South Perris will In addition to Positive Train Control (PTC) teething transport riders to downtown Los Angeles via the 91 issues, Metrolink’s leased freight unit locomotives are Line. There will also be trains running between South also a significant source of delays. Added to the oppo- (Continued on page 15)

ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016 Commuter and Transit Notes naling contract awarded in 2011 that would allow more people to use the London Underground. The contract (Continued from page 14) was terminated in 2013. (Montreal Gazette, May 17) Perris and downtown Riverside, but not serving the rest (Editor's Note by Sasha Ivanoff: If AMT gets desperate, a of the line. worst-case scenario could be that the agency purchases Sil- On its website, Metrolink is touting special grand- verliner Vs from Hyundai-Rotem in the interim, since Den- opening fares for Perris Valley Line riders: a $10 round- ver's RTD is still taking delivery of them. Bombardier's col- trip fare for those traveling in Riverside County, and a lapse is something that I am still stunned about — how a 10 percent discount for passengers starting at one of company that has built reliable equipment in the past is the four new stations and traveling outside the county. struggling to fulfill basic orders.) (Press Enterprise [Riverside, California], May 11) Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Editor's Note by Sasha Ivanoff: With a well-over-two-hour- In an effort to speed up the much-delayed Toronto long running time compared to an hour just to Riverside, the street car replacement project, Bombardier has reallo- train will not be popular with the car crowd, but I can see cated its resources amongst four plants located in Que- people living close to the new stations lining up in droves to bec, Mexico, and Ontario. The plant at Kingston, Ontar- use it. Disappointingly, Metrolink has not used the addition of io will be focused on light rail projects for Metrolinx and service to boost schedules, which might be just what the the Kitchener/Waterloo regions while the Thunder Bay agency needs to boost sagging ridership.) plant will focus on orders from GO Transit and complet- Montreal, Quebec, Canada ing an order for the Toronto subway. The plant in La AMT cancelled a $103-million call for tenders for 24 Pocatiere, Quebec will manufacture Montreal’s new double-decker train cars, for which Bombardier Trans- Metro cars as well as assume some of the manufactur- portation was the only bidder. The cancellation could ing responsibilities for the Toronto street car order. The mean delays getting much-anticipated double-decker location of a second production line for the manufacture trains on the overcrowded Deux-Montagnes Line. of Toronto street cars will be identified by the end of Bombardier said in its bid that it cannot furnish several May. Only 16 new street cars are expected to be deliv- items that are standard on AMT trains: screens an- ered by the end of 2016, raising the total new LRV nouncing the next stop, an intercom, and a passenger- count to 31 out of the 204 ordered in a $1.2 billion con- detection system. AMT stated that Bombardier has built tract. The revised production schedule calls for 40 cars all the agency’s cars and most of its locomotives to in 2017, 76 in 2018, and completion in 2019 with 57 date, and never had a problem providing those features cars. (Toronto Star, May 21) up to now. A featurette done by the Toronto Star for its May 13 Bombardier also said it is not able to build the trains edition shows the inside scoop on the rehabilitation of within the 24-month period stipulated in the contract, the Toronto Transit Commission's (TTC) fleet of CLRV saying it needs 36 months to build the cars. (Canadian Light Rail Vehicle) and the ALRV (Articulated AMT went to tender last December on the double- Light Rail Vehicle) equipment. decker cars to be used on the Candiac, Vaudreuil- In addition to causing frustration among transit riders, Hudson and St-Jerome Lines. The new cars would al- the delayed delivery of TTC’s new streetcars has posed low AMT to move the old cars to the agency’s busi- a major logistical problem for the transit commission. est Deux-Montagnes Line, bringing double-deckers to Bombardier was originally supposed to supply 73 that line for the first time. AMT plans to take the MR-90 state-of-the-art vehicles by the end of 2015, but as of cars currently used on that line out of circulation for sev- mid-May only 19 had arrived. To make up the differ- eral months so they can be recommissioned. ence, TTC has been forced to extend the life of some of Montreal is now on a list of cities disappointed with its older vehicles. Bombardier’s rail operations. At the Harvey Shop of the TTC’s Hillcrest complex, As noted below, Toronto's $1.2-billion order for 204 crews strip the cars down, build them back up, and get streetcars, placed by the Toronto Transit Commission in them ready for the road again. It is a tremendous under- 2009, has turned out to be a serial disappointment for taking that will take thousands of hours of work and cost the city. Bombardier has repeatedly reduced the num- an estimated C$33.1 million. (Toronto Star, May 13) ber of streetcars it expects to deliver this year, promis- TTC announced that it will be operating one of its two ing 75 in 2015, reducing that to 54 in January, then fur- vintage PCC street cars every summer Sunday until ther lowering its estimate to 30 this month. Labour Day weekend on its Route 509/Harbourfront The company is also several months behind in build- Line between Union Station and Fleet Loop. The PCC ing light-rail trains for the city of Waterloo. will operate over this line from noon to 5 PM and the In March, Bombardier’s transportation division public will not be charged a fare to ride. (citynews.ca, faced another challenge to its reputation when it May 22) was accused in a scathing report of “duping” London England Transit about its ability to complete a signaling project in Passenger franchisee TransPennine Express has an- the British capital. The report, prepared by the London nounced orders worth £230 million for CAF electric mul- Assembly’s budget and performance committee, said tiple-units and locomotive-hauled coaches for delivery Bombardier was unable to deliver on a $670-million sig- (Continued on page 16)

NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000 Commuter and Transit Notes sengers, including 93 seated. The air-conditioned vehicles will be fitted with a toilet and Wi-Fi. (Continued from page 15) AVG already has 30 Flexity Swift ET 2010 vehicles in in 2018-9. service, which it ordered from Bombardier in Septem- The £120 million order for 12 five-car Civity UK Inter- ber, 2009. (Railway Gazette, May 20) City EMUs with a maximum speed of 200 kilometers per Iran hour is to be financed by Eversholt Rail. The 25,000- To cope with rising road congestion, air pollution, and volt, 50 Hertz units are scheduled to enter service by the need for urban mobility, Iranian cities are expected April, 2019 and will be used on Anglo-Scottish trips op- to call tenders for at least 4,000 metro cars by 2025, erating on the West Coast Main Line from Manchester Industry Minister Mohammadreza Nematzadeh told the and Liverpool to Glasgow and Edinburgh. inaugural Oil Rail Ports conference held in Tehran on The 13 sets of five-car hauled coaches will be fi- May 15-16. nanced by Beacon Rail Leasing, and will work in push- With several cities — including Shiraz, Tabriz, and pull mode with Class 68 diesel locomotives owned by Esfahan — having opened metro networks in the past Beacon Rail that will be subleased from Direct Rail Ser- five years, the supply industry is anticipating a surge in vices. TPE said, “most of the required Class 68 engines demand as the relaxation of international trade re- are already built and by buying state-of-the-art carriages strictions make access to the Iranian market easier. to be pulled by these engines, much-needed additional Meanwhile, expansion in Tehran is attracting consider- capacity can be introduced quickly.” The new equipment able attention from international suppliers. A sixth metro will have amenities that are very similar to what air trav- line is currently under construction and tracklaying is elers on most full-service carriers are used to, including underway on the Line 1 extension south from the city to Wi-Fi, mobile streaming, and power outlets. Imam Khomeini International Airport. Among the compa- The coaches will initially operate at up to 160 kilome- nies examining the market potential is Transmashhold- ters per hour, with the capability to run at 200 kilometers ing, which is seeking export orders for its Metrow- per hour as routes are electrified. They will enter service agonmash subsidiary, the largest metro car builder in starting in Spring, 2018, initially operating between Liv- Russia. (Railway Gazette, May 17) erpool and Newcastle. Later in 2018 some will begin South Korea running to and from Scarborough. Once TPE's Hitachi South Korea’s national train operator Korail has se- AT300 fleet arrives in December, 2019, the coaches will lected Hyundai Rotem to supply a fleet of 30 HEMU-250 then be transferred to routes from Liverpool and Man- trains for operation on the new Gyeongjeon line to Ma- chester Airport to Middlesbrough and Scarborough. san in the south of the country in 2020. The orders announced on May 20 follow an earlier The Won 102 billion (US$86 million) contract for the 250 agreement for Hitachi to supply TPE with 19 five-car kilometer per hour trains was due to be finalized in mid- electro-diesel AT300 trainsets from its plants at Kasado May. Korail invited tenders for a fleet of high-speed in Japan and Newton Aycliffe in northeast England. trains in November, 2015, but withdrew the tender twice (Railway Age, May 23) as it failed to agree terms with suppliers. Switzerland Hyundai Rotem has been testing its HEMU-430 train The Zurich City Council and the Transport Council of since 2012, and this is the first order for trains in this the Canton of Zurich have approved the acquisition of family. (International Railway Journal, May 23) 70 meter-gauge Flexity 2 LRVs from Bombardier to re- China place the ageing Tram 2000 fleet introduced in the Trial passenger operation began on May 18 on the 1970s. first metro line in Fuzhou, the capital of China's south- The 43-meter-long seven-section vehicles will be 2.4 eastern Fujian province. Trains are now operating on meters wide, accommodating up to 93 seated and 186 the Sanchajie-Fuzhou South Railway Station section of standing passengers (4 passengers per square meter). the 24.9-kilometer north-south Line 1 from Xiangfeng to Deliveries will take place between 2018 and 2023. Xiayangcun. Line 1 has 24 stations, including nine on The SFr 358 million (US$363 million) order includes the section now in operation. spare parts, specialist tools, and staff training. Accord- Service on Line 1 is operated by a fleet of 28 six-car ing to the Zurich City Council, the price per vehicle is trains built at CRRC Tangshan's plant in nearby Quan- SFr 4.3 million. (International Railway Journal, May 19) zhou. The 80-kilometer-per-hour aluminum-bodied Type Germany B trains accommodate up to 1,460 passengers, 256 of Karlsruhe tram-train operator AVG signed a €59.5 mil- them seated. lion contract with Bombardier Transportation on May 18 A second east-west line is under construction and the for the supply of a further 12 Flexity Swift ET 2010 light two lines will intersect at the Nanmendou station. rail vehicles. Last December the National Development and Reform Deliveries are due to take place between September, Commission, China's top economic planning authority, 2017 and March, 2018. Equipped to run on both the approved a construction plan for the Yuan 65.4 billion 750 volts d.c. and 15,000-volt 16.7 Hertz a.c. parts of (US$9.9 billion) second phase of the metro, which will the tram-train network, the LRVs will be 37 meters long extend the system to 147.5 kilometers by 2021. and 2,650 millimeters wide, with capacity for 244 pas- (Continued on page 20)

ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016 TOUR OF TURKEY by Jack May (Continued from May, 2016 issue) (Photographs by the author)

The skies were clear the next morning and it turned It is 7 miles long and shaped like the letter “L,” symmet- out to be a perfect day for riding and photographing with rically opposite to that of the nostalgia line. The 90- temperatures in the mid 70s. Antalya has a population degree turns on both undertakings are at the same in- of 930,000 year-round residents. It is a major tourist tersection, but there is no track connection. One could center, owing to its tropical weather and beautiful set- say they just miss side-swiping each other. The light rail ting along the Mediterranean Sea near many beaches line has 16 stations and operates entirely in grassy and and archaeological sites. The city itself is very clean paved medians, with two long underpasses, each host- and bright, with a busy palm-lined downtown area and a ing a station. Antray’s fleet consists of 14 100-percent lovely sheltered harbor that has been turned into a ma- low-floor LRVs built by CAF in Spain, capable of 65 kilo- rina. A great deal of its conversion from a sleepy little meter per hour operation. They’re similar to the cars village to a major resort transpired from the advent of operating in Seville and formerly in Velez de Malaga low-cost charter flights and later, low-cost air carriers, (CAF has also built high-floor LRVs for Pittsburgh and which now fly to Antalya from most major cities in Eu- Sacramento). rope. While the line’s infrastructure is quite modern, opera- The old city is called Kaleici and has been restored, tion was rather slow, possibly because of safety consid- with limited access allowed for automobiles. Two of the erations during the system’s break-in period. Cars did city’s principal tourist attractions are Hadrian’s Gate, a not go faster than 15 kilometers per hour in the down- triumphal triple arch with pillars, town area, but improved to about built to commemorate the Roman 25 or 30 on the outer portions, emperor who visited the city in the where the line is fenced in — but year 130 A.D., and a 19th century still much too slow. Also unfortu- clock tower, both along the original nately, all of the cars are wrapped city walls. in full advertising regalia, some A single-track standard-gauge quite garish. But the line is new heritage streetcar line was opened and clean, and seemed to be well- in 1999, ostensibly to fight auto- patronized. In one part of the mobile congestion around the old downtown area its central reserva- city. Three MAN-built motors with tion is paved with stone, while in matching trailers were acquired another the median is wide from Nurnberg to operate over the enough to have trees and shrubs 3.2-mile long line, which has three between the tracks. Like the other passing sidings and loops at both new lines we rode, station fare ends. The literature indicates that collection is used, with the medi- the line was donated to Antalya by um being smart cards. its sister German city. On our I first rode and photographed the 2001 visit the cars were painted in new light rail line, and then after a a montage depicting the tourist lunch snack, devoted time to the sights in Antalya and its neighbor- nostalgic tramway, walking a great ing areas, but now advertising deal of the route. I spent the last schemes dominate. The route is portion of the day, before meeting shaped like an inverted backwards Clare, in the busy downtown area, “L,” with the east-west part run- which was crowded with strollers ning close to the sea and the north and shoppers. Clare and I decided -south portion running to the east to return to the same restaurant of the old city. Two of the motor- for dinner, but were disappointed Our charming hotel, the Deja Vu, in the old city, has trailer sets are used to operate a a beautiful patio. when the food was not as good as 30-minute headway. It’s a very the previous night’s. Perhaps the pleasant line with an end-to-end running time of 25 regular chef was off one of the two days. Despite this minutes. “bump” we had a thoroughly enjoyable visit along the In addition to the nostalgic streetcar route, Antalya “Turkish Riviera,” similar to our tour of its western por- now has a light rail line, called Antray. This modern tion in 2001. standard-gauge double-track operation opened in 2009. (Continued on page 16)

NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000 Tour of Turkey (Continued from page 15)

The clock tower, at the edge The northern end of the line is almost perfectly straight, and runs in Antray ducks under a major of Kaleici, is just one of the the grassed-in center reservation of Antalya Blv. This view is near traffic intersection ... many tourist sights in Antal- the Dokuma station. ya, and is located along the streetcar line.

...with the Calli station located between the two ramps. One of Antalya's LRVs is shown on Ali Çetinkaya Cad, almost in the city center, where the two tracks are separated by a wide median containing a great deal of greenery.

Another example of Turkey’s penchant for flowers. After leaving One of Antalya's CAF-built cars lays over at the Meydan terminal at the city center a tram turns off Ali Çetinkaya Cad onto Aspendos the eastern end of the L-shaped line. Blv. (Continued on page 17) 18

ERA BULLETIN — JUNE, 2016 Tour of Turkey (Continued from page 16)

The center of the line is located at the edge of the old city, where The Zerdalilik station at the southern end of the line. Cars operate many tourists tend to congregate. One of the line’s three passing on a long street loop serving the carhouse, far from the tourist tracks is located here at the Kalekapisi stop Entrepreneurs offer areas of town. horse-drawn carriage tours, but this cart will soon move, sans customers, to make way for one of the two streetcars on the line.

The line’s southern section mainly serves the residents of high-rise apartment buildings. Balconies are de rigueur in this area, and a portion of the line is well-landscaped with a lovely fountain.

Much of the eastern end of the line parallels the shore and a park. The motor-trailer sets turn on a loop next to the sea and then pull into the Muze station. (Continued next issue) 19

NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN — JUNE, OCTOBER, 2016 2000 Around New York’s Transit System

Subway Ridership at Record High YouTube video. Readers here should click on the link to Ridership on NYCT subways has reached 1.8 billion this very informative video that provides an illustrated rides per year, highs not seen since 1948. 7, L, and guidebook of what needs to be done: https:// Q are already operating at capacity with no realistic www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt_JloKcE7s. ability to add more trains due to signaling constraints. It Simulated Gas Attack in Subway System is hoped that the Communication-Based Train Control In an exercise to determine the vulnerability of the (CBTC) system being installed on 7 by the end of 2017 subway system’s tunnels to a biological, chemical, or can add perhaps 1-2 more trains per hour. The opening nuclear agent attack, NYC Transit and the Department of the Second Avenue Subway by the end of this year of Homeland Security performed a test to measure how should relieve some of the crowding on the Lexington a gas could spread through the subway tunnels. A Avenue Line, but because the new line turns west at harmless substance (allegedly an easily detectable per- 63rd Street, it cannot serve as a genuine reliever line fume derivative) was released at undisclosed locations south of there to lower Manhattan. In the meantime, in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens during the week of riders on the rest of the system will continue to have to May 9. (Editor’s Note by Ron Yee: This Editor observed “sniffer” devices placed on the platforms at Lexington Ave- deal with the increased congestion, crowding, and de- th lays on a system strained to capacity and dependent on nue NQR, at 68 Street 6, and Grand Central 456. technology and systems dating back to over 70 years Decades ago, during the cold war, there was a secret study ago. Stopgap measures at key and/or crowded stations conducted by the military where agents dropped lightbulb- include “platform controllers,” a form of additional staff- like glass containers onto the tracks between cars of select ing to help with crowd control and facilitate the faster trains as they rolled down the tracks releasing “inert” gases unloading and loading of trains in an attempt to reduce whose progression (or lack thereof) was tracked throughout dwell times and therefore increase hourly throughput the system.) per track or reduce delays. Additional measures such as Tenth Avenue Station to be Built? New York Senator Charles Schumer is pressing for a platform edge gates/doors such as seen on the JFK st Airport AirTrain to prevent people from accidentally fall- revival of efforts to build the Tenth Avenue-W. 41 Street station that, while originally planned when the extension ing onto the tracks and exploring the concept of “open th gangway” design subway cars (no doors between cars to 34 Street-Hudson Yards was built, was dropped due within linked car units), which would increase each to budgetary constraints to save New York City $600 train’s capacity by around 10%, are being studied by million in costs to construct the line. Fortunately, provi- NYC Transit. Concepts currently in use or being tried on sions and property easements alongside and above the London Transport’s (LT) underground tube lines may new tunnel were established in the area to permit the eventually come to NYCT, including closure of the en- construction of the then-cancelled station at some point trances to stations that become dangerously overcrowd- in the future if and when funding became available. With ed and changing passenger behavior on escalators. an estimated $30 billion in revenue being spurred on by The latter is a controversial tactic being tried on LT the massive development of real estate in the area, where people are being instructed to ride escalators Senator Schumer believes that the time for it has ar- side-by-side and not leave an entire side open for peo- rived, given the scale of development that has been ple in a hurry to pass. It is felt that leaving an entire side brought into the far west side of Manhattan. (Editor’s clear actually contributes to crowding as much of the Note by Ron Yee: Serious efforts to begin construction of this escalator’s total capacity is simply being wasted keep- cancelled (postponed) station should be started now, espe- ing one side open for passing. cially in light of the fact that there are now serious plans to relocate and build a new Port Authority Bus Terminal (PABT) Canarsie Tubes Closure Options Presented at Tenth Avenue, west of the existing bus terminal spanning NYC Transit’s two main options regarding the process Eighth to Ninth Avenues.) by which the Canarsie Tubes will be repaired from dam- Brooklyn Express Service Proposed ages resulting from seawater flooding after Hurricane F Sandy can be viewed by clicking on the link to a NYC Transit has proposed a service improvement on (Continued on page 6)

Commuter and Transit Notes transport trips in the city to 30%. In addition, the Chi- nese government is considering lowering the threshold (Continued from page 16) at which cities become eligible to develop urban rail Ultimately Fuzhou plans to construct a 338.1-kilometer projects from 3 million inhabitants to 1.5 million. nine-line network with 215 stations including 26 inter- (International Railway Journal, May 20; Railway Ga- changes with the aim of increasing rail's share of public zette, May 18)